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Dragonhead Katana
Write the first paragraph of your page here. The dragonhead katana is the iconic weapon of "Highlander: The Series" and is the preferred weapon of Duncan MacLeod. This priceless Japanese sword was given to Duncan by his mentor, the samurai Hideo Koto, in 1778. History: According to Hideo, the katana was forged in 1592 (the year of Duncan's birth) by the great swordsmith Masahiro, ("the finest swordsmith in Japan," as told by Hideo). It is already nearly 200 years old when MacLeod first meets Hideo in 1778. History and Acquisition: Use over the Centuries: From this point on, this katana appears almost exclusively in Duncan MacLeod's Watcher Chronicles. Duncan battles and defeats several of his deadliest enemies with the katana, including Slan Quince, Grayson, Xavier St. Cloud, Antonius Kalas, Roland Kantos, Kronos, and Jacob Kell. Even the renegade Watcher James Horton almost met his end at the edge of the dragonhead katana by MacLeod, but was saved by Watcher Joe Dawson. Duncan would also live up to his oath promised to the Koto family and protect Hideo's present-day descendant Midori Koto from her abusive Immortal husband Michael Kent, using the heirloom katana against him. The dragonhead katana is notable for its beauty, as well as its strength and sharpness; it is seen cutting through Antonius Kalas' broadsword and a Masamune katana wielded by Felicia Martins during their climactic duels against Duncan. At their initial encounter, Hideo Koto slices Duncan's cutlass in half. In regards to the katana's aesthetic beauty, Duncan would tell Hideo that he considered the katana to be a work of art; centuries later, Methos himself would later comment about the katana, noting its "remarkable construction." Caleb Cole would attempt to covet the priceless blade for himself while holding Duncan's love Tessa Noel hostage in the Seacouver Mountains. According to Duncan's Watcher profile, Charles Anthony (the bladed weapons expert for the Watchers) has longed for an up-close analysis of the katana, but could only get the name of the sword's maker and date of its creation, courtesy of Joe Dawson. Tragically, in 1997, Duncan's best friend and student Richie Ryan is accidentally killed by Duncan with the katana, by means of the evil Zoroastrian demon Ahriman whom Duncan was chosen to fight and defeat. Duncan forsakes the sword immediately thereafter, seeing it as the murder weapon responsible for Richie's senseless death. However, upon the defeat of Ahriman, Joe Dawson convinces MacLeod to reclaim the katana stating that he avenged Richie's death and was still Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod. Duncan attempted to abstain from bloodshed for a brief period of time after reclaiming the katana; he initially used empty-handed martial arts and nonlethal weapons to defend himself against other Immortals, keeping the dragonhead katana in aesthetic and sentimental safekeeping. However, as time went on, he soon realized that he could not retreat from The Game forever (as he attemped once before), and took up the dragonhead katana once more to defeat his enemies. In 2000, Duncan and his kinsman Connor MacLeod were struggling against an old friend-turned-enemy from Connor's past, the evil Immortal Jacob Kell. Neither Highlander could defeat Kell alone; Connor knew this and sacrificed himself so that Duncan would have the strength to stop Kell once and for all. Using the dragonhead katana, along with the skills taught to him by Connor and Hideo (and a little help from Connor's spirit), Duncan faced-off against Kell and won. Details and Characteristics: Duncan MacLeod's dragonhead katana is very similar to Connor MacLeod's ivory-handled Masamune katana given to him by Juan Sanchez Villa-Lobos Ramirez, although Duncan's sword appears to be longer in both blade and handle; it also features a distinctively different dragon's head and handguard. The sword's two-handed tsuka (hilt) is made of ivory with six small individual Japanese portraits intricately carved into it, ending in a fierce dragon's head at the pommel. According to Duncan MacLeod's Watcher profile, the design of the ivory hilt cleverly disguises the mekugi (bamboo retaining peg) holding the sword together. Towards Season 6 of The Series and the following movies (Endgame, The Source), the handgrip features a bronze "collar" along the neckline of the dragonhead pommel. The katana's bronze tsuba (handguard) sports a lovely motif of two roosters with intertwining tail feathers. The saya (sheath) is lacquered in a glossy black finish with silver Japanese maple leaves embossed upon it. The blade is razor-sharp and contains no fuller. Trivia: -The hilt of the original katana used in Season 1 and most of Season 2 was designed by Richard Cook and Steve Geaghan. It was built by the late propmaster Sal D'Aquila. -Initially, steel blades were used for the katana props, but were deemed much too dangerous by swordmasters Bob Anderson and (later) F. Braun McAsh. Jewel aluminium blades that were manufactured by the production crew were substitued for the steel, although they were quite fragile and bent/broke easily. They also helped the swordfight scenes move faster on camera. Production Designer Steve Geaghan reported that "2 or 3 katanas were used per swordfight" and perhaps even hundreds of aluminum katana blades were made in the first four Seasons alone! -In Season 1's "Free Fall," Duncan explains to Felicia Martins that his katana was given to him "by a clansman and fellow Immortal," and that the katana had been with him for nearly 400 years. Initially, this strongly hinted at Connor MacLeod passing on his ivory-handled katana to him, and would explain why Christopher Lambert is seen using Marto of Spain's Rosewood Tachi in the pilot episode "The Gathering" instead of the iconic katana featured in the movie series. However, this origin story is heavily retconned in Season 3's "The Samurai," and as seen in "Highlander: Endgame," Duncan and Connor's ivory-handled katanas are confirmed to be two seperate and completely different swords.In late Season 2, the studio had signed a deal with Marto of Spain to create and license the katana for the Series, released as "The Sword of the Dragon." This would be the sword used for the remainder of the Series and the following movies afterwards. -The bronze "neck collar" featured on the hilt in late Season 5-Season 6 and the movies (Endgame, The Source) was added for structural support by Marto of Spain due to frequent customer complaints of the dragon's head (apparently affixed to the handle by some form of glue) easily coming off and the blade coming loose at the tang (rat-tailed and screwed to the bottom of the hilt with a hexagonal nut). -Marto of Spain would also release another katana as "The Official Sword of Duncan MacLeod." This sword would feature a dramatically different hilt design consisting of an ivory dragon with its tail wrapped around the entirety of the handle, as well as a gold handguard with a dragon motif (as opposed to the bronze rooster motif) and a glossy red scabbard with gold highlights(similar to Ramirez's in the original 1986 film). According to a popular rumor, Adrian Paul tried out the sword during the Series' production, but found it to be uncomfortable to wield due to the hilt being too bulky in his hand. This katana is featured on one of the posters for "Highlander: Endgame" in Duncan's hand, although it does not appear in the movie itself, having been replaced by Marto's (more familiar) Sword of the Dragon.